B. Clugston

Now playing the underrated and highly enjoyable The Empty Foxhole, Ornette Coleman (Blue Note).

Me too. His tenor playing can cover quite an unexpected range and can be full of surprises. Last time I saw him, he did the human bagpipe soprano solo, followed by a Monk tune, and then switched to tenor in a group setting, where his playing was very bluesy at times.

Really sad news. He was indeed, by all accounts, a really nice guy. Black Swan Records, which he cofounded, was an amazing record store in its time and Pickering did great work in leading the Vancouver Jazz Festival over the years. Back when they had cigarette company funding, he used to bring in some big names from the free/avant jazz world. Here's a nice obit.

I got Ravel.

Jobim's "Wave." It's more of an A & M release, but it does have a CTI logo on it, so I'll go with it.

Superb album--both sides are great. Pepper Adams, Encounter! What a line-up--these guys cover a lot of bases!

Anthony Braxton Ensemble, (Victoriaville) 1988. Nice one with Evan Parker, Paul Smoker, George Lewis, Bobby Naughton, Joelle Leandre and Gerry Hemingway. Kamasi Washington, Heaven and Earth. Still diggin' it! Rudolph Serkin, Beethoven: Variations on a Theme by Diabelli. Not as boogie woogie as Op. 111, but gettin' there.

Speaker's Corner is another legit one and they do a good job. 4 Men With Beards is legit, but only sound as good as the DAT they're given.

Dave Holland has released a new album with Evan Parker, Craig Taborn and Ches Smith called Uncharted Territories. While they still play together from time to time, including last March in London, I think it's been a while since they've been on a record together (I'm thinking Kenny Wheeler's Music for Large and Small Ensembles?). The samples I've heard some great.

RIP. That's a nice article--I never knew much of Dewey Johnson's history. Full credit to him for being the guy who had to solo after Coltrane on Ascension.

Jimmy Lyons, Push Pull (Hat). Jimmy Lyons away from Cecil Taylor is as cool as Paul Desmond away from Dave Brubeck. Love this one!

"The Mis-Used Blues" is amazing!

I met homefromtheforest at an Evan Parker concert, though it took us months to realize we were both board members.

Ornette Coleman, Who's Crazy? 2 (Trio Records, Japan)

Graham Lock's excellent book on Braxton, Forces in Motion, has been reissued with some extra material by Dover Publications. The book covers the quartet's 1985 tour on England and provides excellent background on Braxton's approach to music. One of the best jazz books out there.

I voted for Jimmy Giuffre. I followed your lead and wrote Nessa on the write-in ballot for label.

Paul Desmond Quartet Live Herbie Hancock, Flood John Coltrane, Transition

Bob Dorough has been named one of this year's NEA Jazz Masters, along with Abdullah Ibrahim, Maria Schneider and Stanley the Grouch.

Anthony Braxton in conversation with Alexander Hawkins.

Lewis Porter writes about Both Directions at once, including a theory that someone other than Coltrane wrote “11386”

Rickey Washington plays flute in the orchestra that's on many of the tracks. He also plays tenor on one of the "hidden" disk tracks.

I got a replacement copy--still warped and the second LP has the same labels on each side. Musically speaking, there is some stellar Jimmy Garrison on this.

I'm really enjoying this one. I've only heard bits of the The Epic (which I admired but not really my cup of tea), but I think Heaven and Earth is a step up and more jazzy. At times, when the choir and orchestra are added, it sounds like Ennio Morricone hijacking a CTI session.

Here's a fascinating look at the making of, written by Carla Bley: https://ethaniverson.com/accomplishing-escalator-over-the-hill-by-carla-bley/

I believe the last track was under 10 minutes on the original but ended in a locked groove, so it went on forever. Some of the CD versions try to replicate this. I've never really dwelled much on this record, but it's delightfully bonkers!